Sport
6 November, 2023
Clunes take spot in grand final with win over Maryborough
MARYBOROUGH 77 def by CLUNES 5/80 Clunes will go into the T20 final on Sunday courtesy of a five wicket win over Maryborough at Princes Park. Maryborough won the toss and elected to bat, hoping that their top order could get some quick runs on the...
MARYBOROUGH 77 def by CLUNES 5/80
Clunes will go into the T20 final on Sunday courtesy of a five wicket win over Maryborough at Princes Park.
Maryborough won the toss and elected to bat, hoping that their top order could get some quick runs on the board.
However, it was not to be, as Clunes’ strike pairing of Jaxon Smyth and Ash Gunn ran riot through their top order.
Gunn struck quickly with two wickets, removing Tom Hart (8) and Mitch McClure (0), both batters bowled by the Magpies’ quick.
Smyth then got in the act, luring Ben Hoban into a shot straight to Mitch Coppick for one, before trapping Jackson Goodwin in front for LBW for four to leave the Owls reeling at 4/17.
Logan Kirkwood and Marc Cassidy had a big job ahead of them to try and rescue the situation, and for a while, they were successful, providing a remedy by getting the Owls up to 56.
But Brett Coon struck, bowling Cassidy for 22, and not long afterwards, Kirkwood was gone too, with Mark Allen taking his wicket for 12.
In search of quick runs, Troy Bursill was run out by Brendan Ingram for three, while Coon helped clean up the tail, taking the wickets of Steven Shovan and Jacob Glen.
Smyth took the final wicket, that being Lachie Condie, for four, as Maryborough were all out for 77 off 17.3 overs.
Coon was Clunes’ best performing bowler, taking 3/11 off his four overs, while Smyth’s 3/15 and Gunn’s 2/5 also helped their cause.
Maryborough needed to take quick wickets if they were to stand any chance of taking victory, and early on, they were successful in their endeavours.
Oliver Cassidy struck early, taking the wicket of Mark Allen, before Shovan made it 2/4 when he lured Aidan Thompson into nicking one to Bursill behind the stumps.
Brenton Jones and Lachlan Morganti settled things a little bit, getting the score to 28 courtesy of a 24-run partnership.
However, Shovan was soon back in the action, bowling Jones for 13, and the game was alive again not long afterwards when Oliver got his second wicket, with Morganti departing for 14.
Josh Dunn and Brendan Ingram were able to keep the Owls at bay, with the duo combining for a 41-run stand which saw them eventually get on top.
Ingram wasn’t able to stay to the end, however, hitting a Ben Hoban delivery straight back to him for the Owls’ fifth wicket.
Mitch Coppick came in and finished the job, scoring seven off eight, as the Magpies ran down the Owls’ total in 15.5 overs.
Oliver and Shovan were the Owls’ best bowlers, finishing with 2/16 each, while Hoban finished with 1/17.
